Crowne Plaza hotel owners plan 28-story second tower downtown

The Crowne Plaza Downtown Detroit Riverfront hotel opened in 1965; a second tower was part of the plans for it at that time and has been discussed off and on since. The most recent batch of talks began a couple years ago.

Second Crowne Plaza tower would rise 28 stories, 338 feet

Project would take three years to complete

Second tower was part of original plans in 1965

The owners of the Crowne Plaza Downtown Detroit Riverfront hotel are planning a 28-story second tower that would rise about 338 feet, taller than the existing 25-story building.

The owner, a Mexican and European investor group called Operadora de Servicio Para Hoteles de Lujo, submitted documents to a Detroit City Council committee saying that the second tower for the hotel formerly known as the Hotel Pontchartrain would have 448,300 square feet with typical floors of about 15,900 square feet.

Construction would start this fall or next winter and be complete in 2021, a document provided to the Detroit City Council's Planning and Economic Development standing committee says. When complete, there would be about 150 permanent workers in the tower.

Gerardo Carreno, asset manager for Crowne Plaza, said the tower would have approximately 498 rooms and cost more than $100 million. Crain'sfirst reported on the renewed conversation about a second tower in 2015.

A Detroit City Clerk staff member said the standing committee on Thursday referred the planned project to the city planning commission, which will review it, prepare a report and refer the matter back to City Council.

Architectural Design Inc. in Youngstown, Ohio, is listed as the project architect.

A second tower had been part of the hotel's original plan when it opened in 1965. It reopened in July 2013 after a $5 million renovation.

The 25-story hotel at 2 Washington Blvd. across from Cobo Center has 367 guest rooms, including more than 60 suites, as well as an indoor pool, business center, ballroom and 10,000 square feet of meeting space.

The ownership group paid $8.5 million for it in 2012, according to CoStar Group Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based real estate information service.

Editor's note: A previous version of this article misidentified the owner. This version is correct.